The passing of a great man, Augustine Oguama

This GoFundMe was created by me, Chisom Oguama, in order to help me and my younger siblings support ourselves as we continue to navigate and adjust to our new reality of our father no longer being here.

 

Our dad, Augustine Oguama, was a wonderful man who loved being a father first and foremost. He was the first in his family to come to America from Nigeria, and received a Bachelors degree in Business Administration from Shaw University in 1986. After that, our dad began to create and own different businesses in Raleigh, North Carolina while supporting his family back home in Enugu, Nigeria. As time went on, he got married, started a family and began to drive taxi in 1997 to support his growing family. Two boys and two girls came out of this marriage. Unfortunately, the marriage did not work out just a couple months after my sister being born, leaving him to be a single parent of four young children ages 4, 3, 1, and 3 months old. For the next 21 years, he was devoted to being the best father anyone could ask for. While he tried to venture out and continue businesses in his life, he decided to put that aside to focus on his children and make sure they reached their full potential. Our dad made sure his children went to private school to get the best education any one of us could receive. Our dad made so many sacrifices in order for my younger siblings and I to do well in life. As time went on, things were starting to look up for the Oguama family. It wasn’t until 2020 when we received terrible news.

 

Our dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at the beginning of the pandemic, March 2020. For two years, my younger siblings and I were his caretakers. Then, our dad still had strength and continued to work and travel to Nigeria from 2020 to 2021.

 

After coming to my graduate school graduation in Atlanta a couple days before, he traveled to Nigeria with my youngest brother. As soon as they landed, the next day, our dad was admitted to the hospital where he spent his last days. Our dad passed away on May 25, 2022 in Nigeria at the age of 62. While it saddens all of us, he accomplished his dreams. He was able to see me graduate undergrad and graduate school (even held my masters degree!), saw his son play D1 basketball at top tier programs in the country, and watched his other children be successful in life such as receiving higher education from one of the Top 30 universities in the country.

 

Our dad didn’t die in vain. He made sure he laid a foundation for his children to succeed in life and he saw it unfold during his last years of life. He leaves his family in Nigeria ( a brother and sister plus extended family) and his five children Sierra, Chisom, Bumbum, Ody, and Joy to continue his legacy.

 

We thank you all for the continuous support and prayers ❤️